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    Are You Seeing Me?
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    Are You Seeing Me?
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    Are You Seeing Me?
    Ebook224 pages3 hours

    Are You Seeing Me?

    By Darren Groth

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Twins Justine and Perry have left their home in Australia and embarked on the road trip of a lifetime in the Pacific Northwest.

    It's been a year since their dad lost his battle with cancer and Justine became the sole caregiver for her autistic brother, Perry. Now Perry has been accepted into an assisted-living residence in their hometown, Brisbane, Australia, but before he takes up residence, they're seeking to create the perfect memory.

    For Perry, the trip is a glorious celebration of some of his favorite things: Ogopogo, Jackie Chan movies and earthquakes. For Justine, it's an opportunity to learn how to let go—of Perry, of her boyfriend, Marc—and to offer their mother the chance to atone for past wrongs.

    But the instability that has shaped their lives will not subside, and the seismic event that Perry forewarned threatens to reduce their worlds to rubble...
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOrca Book Publishers
    Release dateAug 18, 2015
    ISBN9781459810815
    Unavailable
    Are You Seeing Me?
    Author

    Darren Groth

    Darren Groth is the author of several novels, including the acclaimed YA works Are You Seeing Me? and Munro vs. the Coyote. He was the winner of the 2016 Adelaide Festival Award for Young Adult Fiction and has been a finalist in numerous other prestigious prizes, including the Governor General's Literary Award, the Sheila A. Egoff Children's Literature Prize and the CBCA Book of the Year. Darren is a former special-education teacher and the proud father of a son with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). He lives in Delta, British Columbia.

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    Reviews for Are You Seeing Me?

    4/5

    45 ratings26 reviews

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    • 4/5
      This is a story about nineteen year old twins - brother and sister - who a year after losing their father from cancer set out from Australia on a trip to British Columbia and Seattle. Justine, the sister, is the sole caregiver for her brother, Perry, who has a neurological condition that causes him to be prone to what she describes as 'inappropriate behaviours'. She has ended up as the caregiver because their mother left them when they were four years old.The trip is to be one last journey together before Perry moves into assisted living back home in Australia. The story is told in turn by each of the twins, which made it more interesting than a straight story told from one person's point of view. It was interesting to see things through both Perry and Justine's eyes. There were some really funny moments, along with some sadder ones, plus the story took some unexpected turns along the way. The author is an Australian, married to a Canadian, with twin children, who moved from Australia to Canada. He seems to have written many of his own experiences into the book, which made it a very believable story, as well as very detailed in the places the characters visited.This is one I'd recommend, especially for teens. It touches on many different issues that people face when moving from adolescence into adulthood. I'm glad I was given the opportunity to read it.
    • 4/5
      Very enjoyable YA book that tells the story of twin teenage Australians that visit North America to find their mom shortly after the passing of their father. One of the twins, Perry, has autism, and his sister,Justine, is his care taker. The story switches perspectives in telling the story from accounts of both main characters. The reader gains backstory from journal entries written by their father. The story is well-paced, funny, and flowing. The author at one point skips over detailing a difficult point in the story by jumping narrators and the event has already occurred, which I think was a little weak, but the remaining story more than makes up for it. Would highly recommend to teen readers. Warning: kind of a tear jerker in parts.
    • 4/5
      "I'm a single dad and I got twin kids, I said. One who's seventeen going on thirty, one who's seventeen going on ten."That. That was the line that hit me.This story was beautiful, but in that fuzzy, cozy kind of way, with a sprinkle of heartbreak thrown in. Are You Seeing Me? is about twins, Justine and Perry. Perry's got a brain condition that results in what people call "inappropriate behaviors", and when their father passes away, Justine becomes his main caretaker. But then Perry is accepted at an assisted-living residence, and the two of them decide to go away on a road trip, before the goodbye. But for the twenty-year-old girl who wants to give her mother a second chance and her twin brother, who loves earthquakes, Jackie Chan, and Ogopogo, the Canadian lake monster, the world is going to continue being a little shaky.The plot was very calm, I'd say. A lot of the progression happened emotionally, which really is the most important part. Although there was nothing really surprising, it was kind of like a cozy little adventure.The book is also written in dual perspectives (Justine and Perry) that switched in chunks, but their voices were each so unique that I had no trouble differentiating between who was who. I especially loved reading Perry's voice because it helped me understand what it would be like inside the mind of someone with a mental disability. I loved the abstract writing style, and though it made the climax scene a little confusing, I understood the reasoning behind it and a reread of the scene really cleared things up and added to the story's realism.The writing style was definitely a very strong part of this book. There were some journals written by the dad that were scattered throughout the book, and I also really enjoyed the extra depth they brought to the story.Overall, this book was definitely a treasure, and I'm so glad I had the opportunity to read such an eye-opening story.
    • 5/5
      *spoilers!*This was a pretty awesome book. I kind of like how no one ever came out and labeled Perry as autistic, even though it's obvious that's what he is. The book was very... Whimsical, to me. I thought I would have a problem with the alternating POVs, but I found I really enjoyed it, especially Perry's POV. I like the way his thoughts and actions were written, I liked being able to see into his mind a little bit. I admit it confused me a few times when his mind would make up things that were happening, and at first I thought the big earthquake towards the end was one of Perry's hallucinations. I kind of freaked when Justine got hurt, my mind went to worse case scenario and I couldn't imagine what would happen to Perry without her. I was so relieved that she was okay, although I was surprised that their mother actually went and saw her. I thought after that big blow-up about Leonie walking away from Perry at the fair, she would fade out of their lives again. I was glad to see that they all made up. This was a really good book and I'm glad I read it.
    • 4/5
      I received a free copy of this book from the publisher and LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review. And I'm so glad I had a chance to read this book because there is so much that I love about it.The story follows twins Justine and Perry as they travel to Canada and explore the west coast before Perry -- who has autism -- moves into an assisted living facility. The characters are wonderful and engaging. The portrayal of autism is probably the best that I've seen in fiction so far. And I really enjoyed the themes of family and learning to see the people in your life for who they really are. This book was sweet, and it was hopeful, and it made me cry more than a little.One of the neatest things, though, was the age of the characters. Justine and Perry are over the age of 18, and they have more adult responsibilities and independence; I can't remember the last time I read a piece of YA fiction where the main characters were adults. I do, however, remember approaching my late teens and feeling like there was a huge, intimidating gap between YA and adult fiction, and I think that Are You Seeing Me? helps to bridge that.
    • 5/5
      Are You Seeing Me? was amazing. It was surprisingly intense at places, but also sweet and heartwarming at others. I loved seeing the story through both Perry and Justine's eyes - it offered such unusual insight into the story. There is an unexpected twist, but the story concludes in a way that is satisfying. (Although before I reached the end I was prepared to chuck the book at a wall for the intensity of the emotions Groth was putting me through.) Perry has his own unique voice throughout the story, as does Justine, and it was easy to fall in with them right from the beginning. I have had trouble focusing to read recently, but this book was so easy to lose myself in that I read it in one day. I highly recommend Are You Seeing Me? to anyone who wants a intense yet heartwarming read that pulls you into the story quickly. Disclaimer: I received this book for free in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
    • 4/5
      I received an Early Reviewers copy from LibraryThing of Are You Seeing Me? It was a touching story that made me cry and laugh out loud about family relationships and responsibilities. I did struggle with the fact that Justine was only 19 years-old and had so much responsibility, but I appreciated her commitment to her brother.
    • 4/5
      “You are responsible for the actions of your hands and the words from your mouth and the feelings in your heart. Dad used to tell me: If you go through life finding fault in others, you’ll end up in a world of one. He said we need the people around us—warts and all—and I understand this much better now that I’m older.”Perry “Pez” has a mental condition. The book never comes out and states what exactly he’s diagnosed with (except for the back blurb), but from the way the character was portrayed it was clear that he has some form of autism. The cover points out two of Pez’s three main interests: earthquakes, and sea monsters, with the third missing element being Jackie Chan movies. His interests are a vital part of the story. He constantly compares his sister’s emotions to tremors and fragments of the earth, sees a little of himself in the misunderstood sea monsters, and tries to find his own courage in his hero. The book is sectioned off and allows the reader to see Pez’s point-of-view, which was my favorite parts of the book. You really never know when you’re reading something that is a part of his imagination or something that is really happening. Readers that are not familiar with Pez’s condition might not understand the ticks, which I think will add to the story since people finding it hard to interact with him plays a major part in the plot.Justine “Just Jeans” is a strong and pure female main character that never sees her brother as a burden, but just as her brother and is more annoyed with the people who see Pez as anything but. Throughout the plot she is struggling with her brother’s decision to leave her care and join a community for the disabled, meeting her mother for the first time in over a decade, and her boyfriends constant worry for the two of them. The interactions between the siblings are the best parts of the book. Simple everyday touches described in such detail brought the characters to life, such as the twins always holding hands with only three fingers. But the book isn’t just about the sibling bond between Justine and Perry. Their mother left when they were four and the road trip planned by Justine is her final chance to be in their lives. She’s a bit of a mix between new age and hippie. Even if he’s not officially in the book, the reader does get glimpses of what kind of father the twins had through a journal he kept for Justine since she was born. Pages of the journal are placed into the book to give windows into their past, showing both the twins growing up and giving a little history of their mother and father. Are You Seeing Me? is a heartwarming, and heartbreaking, novel about family bonds and how a disability doesn’t make a person any less of a human.
    • 5/5
      If you enjoyed The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time or House Rules you will love this book. Told from the points of view of Perry and his sister and caretaker Justine, the book focuses on the strong bond between siblings whose mother abandoned them as children and whose father recently died. I don't want to talk too much of the story. It is basically about relationships and how we assume things about the other person that may or may not be true.Both the major characters are engaging, complex, and selfless. I read this book in one night as I could not put it down. I loved both Justine and Perry. Both have big hearts, protective natures, a sense of humor, and courage.We are never exactly told that Perry has autism but Justine repeats a speech that sums up his challenging life in a single paragraph, "My brother has a brain condition that causes them to feel anxious or different places and circumstances. He has trouble with people – mixing with them in communicating with them – and it sometimes results in inappropriate behaviors. I appreciate your understanding and patience." It sounds so simple, but it is incredibly complex. Perry struggles with all his strength to behave appropriately and to be a good brother in spite of his brain condition.When Justine takes Perry all the way from Australia to Canada, her brother must cope with sensory overload, the vastly unfamiliar, and breaks in his routine. Her reason for doing this opens a whole new Pandora's box.This is a story about sibling love, a broken family, redemption, sacrifice, and devotion. This book was a well deserving Governor General Award Finalist. A beautiful book that will seize your emotions and tug at your. I highly recommend it for all ages.
    • 5/5
      This was an excellent, quick, heartwarming read. I found it very relatable as I have an autistic brother. The parts where Perry jumped seamlessly from reality to his dream world and his constant obsession with certain topics reminded of my brother because he is the same way. I loved the alternating points of view and Perry's imaginative story about Bieber. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick, enjoyable read and anyone who is interested in learning about autistic individuals.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this story, and I am not just saying this because of all of the great references to British Columbia I can personally relate to, although that is always a bonus when reading a story. This is a story with a big heart. At times funny, quirky and entertaining, Groth hits the right balance between levity and gravity as he brings home the meatier issues of family, relationships and the fact that being independent doesn't mean going it alone, separate and apart from the ones we love. His characters are well drawn and I really liked how Groth makes use of journal entries as the mechanism to bring the father's point of view into the story. I also liked the shifting POV, providing the reader with unique insight into both Justine and Perry's thoughts and feelings. Perry's shifts - when he goes from reality to a form of dreamworld and then back - were unpredictable and it would take me a minute to clue in and follow the thread but I think it worked well to communicate Perry's coping mechanisms as well as how he sees and reasons things through. Overall, a great feel good story with a wonderful message and a great presentation of a character with autism spectrum disorder.
    • 4/5
      I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was a nice and quick read that was nicely written. This book follows Justine and Perry, 19 year old twins as they go on holiday to the Northwest in America and Canada. Their mother left when they were young and their father died shortly their 18th birthdays and Justine takes over the role as Perry's caretaker as he is autistic. We are given alternating perspectives between the two twins, there are also diary entries from the twin's father interspersed throughout Justine's sections. I thoroughly enjoyed the inclusion of those, it provided a good look back without messing up the overall flow of the story.Also, I loved both the cover and the title, both were rather fitting and I loved everything that the cover captured.For me this book loses a star because of the ending - I feel like it was predictable and left me wanting more.Overall - this was a great read, I loved the story and the characters and would wholeheartedly recommend it[side note: growing up in the pacific northwest in was fun to read about Justine and Perry going to many of the places I have gone over the years]
    • 3/5
      I received this book through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers Giveaway. This book features brother/sister twins -- one who was born without issue and the other who was born with autism. The struggles between the two feel mostly authentic though I do feel like Justine was a super sister. The description of Perry's autism is refreshing and not sterotypical. You are not left thinking him a helpless person at all and he and his sister have good chemistry on the page. While the characters were developed well, I did feel the plot lagged a bit. Longer diary entries broke up the story for me. Meeting the mother at the end tied up a little too nicely. But I would still recommend this book to readers!
    • 4/5
      This tale of twins Perry and Justine overcoming diversity and disasters is both hilarious and heart-warming.
    • 5/5
      "We can't live in a world of one", Perry is fond of saying, even though it's difficult for him to not do so. He is a high-functioning autistic young man, who is more than capable. He and his twin sister, Justine, are on their own. Their father recently passed away and their mother abandoned them while they dreamed the dreams of four year olds.Now they are on a well-deserved vacation in Canada. For Perry it's about seeing Ogopogo (Canada's Loch Ness Monster) and studying seismic activity. For Justine, it's about spending time with Perry before he moves into Fair Go, a community where "Special Needs and Life Purpose Come Together" and about finally meeting their mother, Leonie. Together the twins must decide if they will allow Leonie back into their lives. Perry must decide if he wants to "free" Justine. Justine must decide if she wants to risk letting a stranger into her heart. And Leonie must decide if she will stick with her twins or abandon them once again. Wow! This was a great quick read. I loved the concept of the book - I loved it even more with the author's life experiences. He is originally from Australia, now living in Canada with twins, one of them being autistic. I loved the dual narration, letting the reader into Perry's mind was a real treat. Overall the story was predictable, but it wasn't about reaching your destination, so much as it was about enjoying the journey. The ending surprised me quite a bit and brought me to tears. I really appreciated the inclusion of the father's journal entries, I wish there had been more, but they covered the major happenings. I was a bit surprised they chose to market this book as a "young adult" novel. It's true the twins are 19, but I feel it had a more of an "adult" feel - moving in with a significant other, adult relationships with parents, etc. I can see mature teens and "new adults" enjoying this, but I think an adult audience would have been more appropriate. Finally, I loved the cover artwork and the title. I think they were both spot on and encompassed the overall feeling of the book. I will definitely be recommending this to everyone who asks!
    • 4/5
      I love books where the title plays into the main themes of the novel and the question "Are you seeing me?" gets to the heart of this story. Perry, as the autistic brother, is the most obvious example of someone who isn't always seen for who he really is - but the members of his family also take their turns at asking others to really see them for who they are. Reconciling with their estranged mother, coming to terms with other views of their father, figuring out how they really want to spend their future - all of these things require them to really see each other and accept each other. Lovely book.
    • 4/5
      I received this through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.I approached this book with eagerness as well as trepidation. The concept was compelling: two Australians, an autistic young man and his neurotypical sister, take a trip to Canada to explore the boy's obsessions with Ogopogo and earthquakes before he begins a new life at an assisted living facility. My son is autistic. I really hoped for a good portrayal of autism--and was also worried that the story may fall prey to the "autism is akin to magic" trope that is both overdone and aggravating.The book is pure literary fiction. Groth does bring up the trope, and then squashes it flat. That pleased me. The back cover copy mentions that Groth's son is on the spectrum, and I think he's put that experience of living with an autist to good use here. It's a nuanced portrayal, showing the positive and the negative of autism, and both through a lens of optimism. Ultimately, it's a story about love between siblings and a father and his children, and finding love beyond that sphere, too. I've read some grimdark fantasy recently and it was refreshing to read something that regards most people as fundamentally good. I enjoyed the road trip aspect, too, since I used to live near Seattle and had traveled many of the places the characters visited from Vancouver into Seattle. I did hope for more from the Ogopogo plot but that's more of a selfish desire on my part, not a flaw within the story.I loved Perry. I saw a lot of my son in him. Perry fixates on earthquakes, sea monsters, and Jackie Chan. His twin sister Justine is a good sort. She's Perry's fierce advocate, and in many ways, his substitute mother since their own abandoned them when they were young. Groth alternates between Justine and Perry in perspective to tell the story, and it works well. I was concerned that Perry's POV might be heavy-handed, but the voice strikes just the right balance. It's a good book. Predictable in the end, yes, but sometimes that's not a bad thing.
    • 5/5
      Nineteen year old (Twins) Justine and Perry leave their home after their father has died, hoping to both have a "free" life. Justine has been Perry's caregiver, he has a "brain disorder" (Autism). Perry has been accepted into an assisted-living facility, this is an important trip, one he finds an adventure. Justine, needs time away from her boyfriend Marc for some self discovery. When their Mother offers them a chance to visit they decide it is the right thing to do.Told in alternating point of view, we get to see how Perry and Justine feel. Perry is very likable, he is a functioning Autistic young man, just wanting to do the right thing. But what is the right thing for him and his beloved sister? Justine is likable as well. She has a lot on her mind; her brother, the recent death of her Father, her boy-friend, her Mother, their trip half way around the world. She has the most difficult decisions to make, but she wants to be sure they are right for both herself and her brother.A well written story of love, loss, family and self discovery. We learn about Autism, how it affects Perry and his sister. The unconditional love and strong bond between the two his heartwarming and real. The decisions they face are not easy, Perry wants happiness for his sister, Justine wants happiness for Perry. The need to be able to achieve the perfect blend where they are both truly happy, is what they both strive to achieve.Are You seeing me is a beautiful story that will stay with me for a long time. I highly recommend to young/adult and adult readers as well. a true five-star read.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book very much. This is the story of twins Justine and Perry. Perry is a high-functioning autistic person and Justine is his only caregiver. Their mother left when they were four, and their father has recently died. They have travelled from Australia to Vancouver and Seattle on a last vacation together before Perry moves into assisted living. The story is told from the alternating perspectives of Justine and Perry. The characters are well portrayed and I loved the way the interacted with each other. I liked that Perry's autism was just part of who he was and not the whole focus of the story. A Young Adult novel needs, in my opinion, a good story and this one held my interest. Both twins are trying to do what they think the other wants, as is often the case in families. The author does a good job in telling the story and bringing it all together in a realistic way.
    • 4/5
      Nineteen-year-old Justine and Perry are Australian twins. Perry has what Justine calls ‘a brain condition’ which makes it hard for him to deal with normal social conventions. He keeps a seismometer with him at all times which helps him measure earthquakes whether physical or emotional. He loves Jackie Chan, Ogopogo Canada’s answer to the Loch Ness monster, and his book about earthquakes but most of all he loves Justine or as he calls her Just Jeans. And she loves him too. Their mother had left them when they were four and their father raised them but now he has died. Before he did, he arranged for Perry to go to Fair Go, a home for the disabled. Now Justine is taking Perry on a trip to Vancouver so that they can have one last time together, where he can hunt for Ogopogo and where she has arranged to meet her pen pal. Are You Seeing Me by author Darren Groth is a sweet tale about two extremely likeable people who love each other and depend on each other more than either realizes. The narration is divided between the two along with entries from a journal that their dad has kept all of their lives and which he has left for Justine. The story is an insightful, sensitive, and compassionate portrayal of autism - Perry is high-functioning, intelligent and caring but his condition also clearly makes him at times very difficult. And Justine isn’t perfect – she gets frustrated with others and often overreacts in her efforts to protect Perry but it is clear that she needs Perry just as much as he needs her. This story could so easily have devolved into schmaltz and over-the-top melodrama but somehow by showing the problems involved with dealing with an autistic child, the story remains believable.This is a heartwarming and well-written story about family, disability, compassion, forgiveness, loss and the love between siblings and the sacrifices each is willing to make for the other. This is a quick read but an engrossing one with a nice touch of humour as well as pathos and gets a high recommendation from me.
    • 5/5
      Whatever the opposite of a reading slump is, I’m in the middle of it.And I’m the opposite of complaining.I don’t want it to end, but I’m sure that ridiculous book is just over the horizon.But before I get to the inevitable, I happened upon this beautiful treasure. I haven’t read anything since I finished it 2 days ago, and I don’t know if anything will compete to Are You Seeing Me?. I sat, squished in the backseat of my dad’s truck on the 16 hour ride home from vacation, and read this book in 2 hours. No, wait, I devoured this book.2 very well spent hours lost in the amazingly wonderfully world of Justine and Perry.I don’t know what to say; how to break down everything I’m feeling for this book. I do, however, know that I’d absolutely love to have someone like these twins in my life. They’re simply extraordinary people for separate reasons.I laughed. (If you’re a Beiber fan, you may not).I cried. (Often. Constantly).I sighed and grinned and was so proud of this book! I was so proud of how it all turned out. Okay, maybe “proud” isn’t the right word.I was humbled. I was ecstatic.I’m not surprised this book was awesome. It is, after all, written by an Australian. And we all know there’s an overabundance of awesome creative writing over there. Seriously, I haven’t met an Australian author I didn’t love. No lie.Are You Seeing Me? is, at the center, a story about family. But it is so much more than that and I’m a better person for knowing it. Beautifully written and extraordinary complex, this isn't a book to forget.
    • 4/5
      I won Are You Seeing Me? in a giveaway last year but it’s taken me until now to get around to it. And granted, I read it over a couple of weeks as my break from Brisingr, the enormous Inheritance Cycle volume that was too big to carry around all the time so it didn’t get my full attention. Which is a shame because this book is one I would normally have devoured had I given it the time. In the sporadic bursts that I did read it I really enjoyed it.This is the story of 19 year old Australian twins, Justine and Perry, who have just lost their father and are about to embark on the trip of their lives to Canada. They are no ordinary twins – Justine is the primary carer for her brother, who has a ‘brain condition that can cause him to feel anxious or upset in different places and circumstances’. Perry’s behaviour can change drastically in moments and it’s up to Justine to deal with the fall out – from getting through airport security to just getting through the every day. But after their trip is over, Perry will be going to live in an assisted care facility – Fair Go – and Justine will be free to live her life as she pleases, as their father planned before he died. So they are hoping to create a perfect memory before they go their separate ways.Are You Seeing Me? felt real. So much more real than many of the novels I’ve been reading lately – and not just because it was a contemporary. It could have something to do with the fact that our main characters are Australians – I have been wading through way too much American YA and honestly I was getting sick of it. But I can relate to Justine, maybe not in the way of her being a carer, but because she is Australian. It’s like when you go overseas and you meet Australians. It’s like a homecoming even though you’ve never met those people before, you feel like you’re reuniting with old friends. It must be the accent. When reading, it’s the mannerisms, the slang, what they talk about. And it’s amazing and it reminds me that I do not read enough homegrown authors who write about homegrown characters. I love the way Groth treats his characters – like real young adults. They are nineteen and about to embark on their lives as (young) adults. For once I feel like the label is appropriate to the age of the characters. Justine is mature – she has had to be – but can also be snide and funny and she can get angry too. She is juggling the responsibility of caring for her brother with the possibility of a future with her boyfriend Marc as well as the grief of losing her brother and the insecurity of a mother who wants to reconnect. It’s safe to say she has a lot on her plate! And while she’s not always calm and under control, she is never a brat, never cries ‘why me?’, she just handles her lot in life and that is so commendable. Marc, while we don’t see much of him, is caring and protective but it’s too much – so Justine tells him that. And guess what – not a love triangle in sight! The story is told in alternating POVs with the very distinct and different voices of Justine and Perry, with each twin’s section of the book being a considerable size so we weren’t constantly switching from one to the other, which I appreciated. Perry, despite his condition, is fairly functioning and capable, as Justine says to their mother, and he understands how his condition affects his sister. It was heartwarming but also a bit heartbreaking to read how he wanted his sister to have her own life without worrying about him. Being in his POV also allowed me to understand more about him and how he saw the world, as opposed to just being told by Justine. Scenarios in Perry’s world often take a more fictional route, and it is up to the reader to work out what is real and what is in Perry’s head. As much as I enjoyed the journey of Are You Seeing Me? it all kind of boiled down to a typical ending. Things wrapped up nicely, as I suppose they sometimes do in real life, and I do love a happy ending, but it was probably the least interesting thing about this book. Is that awful? I want to end this review on a good note and I realise I haven’t mentioned the excerpts of the beautiful diary that Justine’s father kept for her throughout her life. I loved that and they often moved me to tears.  
    • 5/5
      I received this book free for review from LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review. Despite the privilege of receiving a free book, I’m absolutely candid about it below because I believe authors and readers will benefit most from honest reviews rather than vacuous 5-star reviews.The tiny nutshell view on this book is that it's the story of a family trying to find stable emotional ground again after the death of their single-parent father when one member, Perry, the son, is autistic and has to depend on his sister for many of his daily needs. The narrative is constructed from a dual viewpoint so you get half of the story from the daughter's viewpoint and half from the autistic son's.Firstly, this is a YA novel so I give it a different critical eye than I would an adult novel. I ask myself three simple questions. The first of which is: "Is there any reason I wouldn't want my kids to read this novel?" In that regard, there is a fair amount of profanity but it's nothing over the top. There is brief mention of sex but nothing graphic. The book is devoid of drug use and has only minimal violence and it's the sort that kids are exposed to in action movies: car chases and the like. So on that basis I have no negative concerns about the book.Secondly, I ponder whether there's anything in the book that would make me WANT my kids to read it. In this case, there are a few positive messages about reconciliation and coping with situations and perhaps understanding a bit more about how the autistic mind operates. These themes don't leap out and club you over the head but they do represent an example of a family in a tough situation making it through to the other side so children dealing with loss might find it helpful. The book isn't terribly strong in this regard but its themes are at least present.Thirdly, and somewhat less importantly, will the kids enjoy reading it? In this case, I'm not really convinced. As an adult I found it interesting from more of an intellectual standpoint, getting inside the head of this autistic child and seeing their family dynamic. Unless the YA in question knows a person in this situation I think it might be difficult to engage their interest completely. So to the positive, the book is clean and has some weak lessons to teach. I was reasonably entertained and zoomed through this title in a few hours so it's a quick trip to be sure. The family dynamics are well rendered and the characters vivid (as you'd expect since the author lives with an autistic son).To the negative, the action does seem to flag about three quarters of the way through as evidenced by my sudden nap at about that point. Also, some of the segments from the autistic son's point of view leave the reader rather wondering what exactly happened. His perception of events (or retelling of them) is sometimes warped by his autism so some part of the real story is rather unknowable.In summary, this is a solid afternoon read and safe for the kiddos but it's not on my "if you only read one book this month" list exactly.PS: I hope my review was helpful. If it was not, then please let me know what I left out that you’d want to know. I always aim to improve.
    • 4/5
      Are You Seeing Me? was a quick, but great read. It was heartwarming, unique, and left an impression in my mind. Although, I did see it as a little predictable and maybe a little too simplistic at times. I really enjoyed Justine and Perry’s characters and the connection between the pair. Also, the journal entries from their father were brilliant; they definitely pulled at my heartstrings.
    • 4/5
      This is an easy to read, but moving story about family, loss and love. At first I found the story a bit slow, but by the end I couldn't put it down. I loved the relationship between Perry and his sister, Justine, and was so pleased that the author gave them both a voice, as it allowed their personalities to shine through. While the siblings were wonderfully depicted and had strong, unique voices, I did like Perry's POV a little more. The twins' father also had a powerful voice which came through in the journal he'd written to Justine. These entries gave the reader an insight into Justine and Perry's childhood and at times were absolutely heart-breaking. This book is both funny and inspirational, and will touch your heart.
    • 4/5
      A heartwarming and touching novel from Darren Groth, Are You Seeing Me? is a story about siblings, family, love and understanding.After losing their father to cancer just weeks shy of their eighteenth birthdays, nineteen year old twins, Justine and Perry, are heading to Canada for a holiday of a lifetime. Perry is hoping to find proof of the Ogopogo’s existence and visit the area where his favourite Jackie Chan movie, Rumble in the Bronx, was filmed. Justine, anxious about their impending separation, is determined this will be an adventure Perry won’t forget. Neither are fully prepared for the seismic events that will rock their world.Are you Seeing Me? is told, with compassion and insight, from the alternating first person viewpoints of Justine and Perry. Justine, older than Perry by three minutes, is ‘neurotypical’, Perry, as Justine is often forced to explain, “…has a brain condition that can cause him to feel anxious or upset in different places and circumstances. He has trouble with people – mixing with them and communicating with them – and it sometimes results in inappropriate behaviours”. Since the death of their father, Justine has been Perry’s sole carer, their mother having abandoned the family when the twins were only four.The unusual sibling dynamic is wonderfully portrayed, ‘Just Jeans’ and ‘Pez’ have a loving bond. Shortly before his death, the twins father made arrangements for Perry to move to an assisted living community, but Justine is struggling to accept the decision despite acknowledging Perry’s right to independence and Perry is determined to hide his reluctance to leave his sister in the belief that doing so will free her to live the life she put on hold to care for him.I thought the twins were realistically depicted, and very likeable, characters. Justine is mature and capable but not perfect. Perry’s perspective is believable, though occasionally confusing given his occasional slip into an imaginary narrative.There aren’t any real surprises in the plot of Are You Seeing Me?, but the story is well paced and believable. It is well written with natural dialogue and I particularly enjoyed the author’s dry sense of humour.Are You Seeing Me? is an engaging read, appropriate for both mature YA readers and adults.FYI: Groth dedicates this novel to his own daughter who, like Justine, is neurotypical while her twin brother, like Perry, has been diagnosed with autism (whom he honoured in Kindling)